Don't Cut Me Out
by stopthisgirl
Summary: "I'm not just some face that you cut out of old pictures. I've messed everything up, but Ally, I don't want to be cut out." Austin plays back the mistakes he's made with Ally when he realizes she's trying to move on and start her own career without him. Based off of Chapters & Choices and my predictions (mostly hopes) of Partners & Parachutes.


HEY GUYS I wrote a story oooh how exciting. This oneshot is a continuation of Chapters & Choices and based off of my own predictions of Partners & Parachutes. It's me, so I hope you're prepared for an angsty read. Formatting is also being dumb so lol I hope you appreciate my little friends *.*

I do not own Austin & Ally so congrats Disney.

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"You would just cut me out of your life like that?"

I messed up, that's for sure. She pushed her way out of the practice room; our practice room. I guess it was her store, and it was her piano, and this was her safe place, but then I came along just to ask about that stupid harmonica. And then I fixed the room up for her, and I bought that fridge to keep her pickles in, and I made it my home too; it was ours.

But now she won't look at me, and she's quickly stepping down the stairs, and I think I see her shoulders tremble, and I hurt more than I think I'm able to. This can't be real. I couldn't have messed up this badly. But I guess I did.

*.*

Jump back to last weekend when Ally's mom came home from Africa. I remember seeing her for the first time and feeling like I finally got a glance at the whole picture. Here was the piece of Ally's life I never knew about. I knew everything would change from that moment on, but I never would have guessed it would end up like how it has now.

I knew I liked Ally, but I couldn't tell her.

_Hey Ally, you know what you should try liking more than pickles? Me! Haha ha ah ha ha._

No.

_Hey Miami, how are you guys doing tonight? I'm Austin Moon, and I'm going to be singing some songs for you. This first one is called I like Ally Dawson!_

No.

*.*

Jump to a few days later when Ally and I hugged in front of everyone in the practice room. You could say it went on a little bit longer than I had intended. Everyone stared. Dez and Trish wiggled their eyebrows, and we jumped apart once we realized we were still holding each other. Ally rolled her eyes at Trish, and I pinched the palms of my hands behind my back.

Ally told me to go so she could work on the song and turn it into a duet.

"You can go; I'd really rather just work on it by myself for a little bit," she told me. Her lashes hid her eyes, and she ran her fingers over the small scraps of papers sticking out from the pages of her songbook. I nodded, but she still didn't look at me.

"Okay, I can come back later though."

"No, no. It's fine. I'll just see you tomorrow, okay?"

Ouch.

*.*

Jump to the night Ally and I were supposed to sing our big duet. I ran all the way to the practice room after Ally took off. I didn't know what I was going to say; what was I even doing barging in anyways? I knew Penny was up there already, but my feet wouldn't stop.

"I already talked to my mom. I'm ready to perform." Ally smiled at me, and I smiled at her. I saw a hand reach up and brush her hair back. It was my hand; what was I doing? But I forgot the show existed, and I just got wrapped up in the moment of being there with Ally, and I made a fool of myself. But I guess that's what's supposed to happen. I guess that meant Ally really was different from all the other girls, but I felt this twinge in my chest.

The water bubbled as it neared the top of the pot; the fire raging underneath. These are the mistakes, nearing the edge and nearing Ally, about to spill out and burn us.

But I liked her too much. I grabbed her hand, and we walked all the way back to the jungle cafe. Her hand was so soft, and it held on so tightly, and I couldn't just let it go.

*.*

Jump to the kiss. I don't regret it, but I wish I could just change how it all played out. I wish Trish and Dez weren't watching us. I wish Kira didn't come in and hug me. I wish I never asked her to be my girlfriend again. I wish I could do something right for once.

Ally left. I didn't run after her. I went home, and I broke the strings on my guitar. As I restrung it, I thought about how guitars were simple. You break a string, and you fix it. You tune it, and now you can play it again.

I think I broke Ally. I definitely broke myself. But what do I fix? Where are the strings?

*.*

Jump to yesterday when I saw Megan walking down the stairs of Sonic Boom. I'm not sure why Dez and I were hanging out there. Our feet just take us there every time we go to the mall.

"Megan is doing a story on Ally's new career," Dez said softly, which was strange. Neither of us get sad that often, and I can't remember the last time I heard Dez's "concerned voice," but I noted that I didn't like it that much. I wasn't supposed to be sad, and I wasn't supposed to need cheering up.

"Her new career?" I finally started processing what Dez had said.

"Yeah, now that she's beaten her stage fright, she's going to start singing her own songs." Dez looked me in the eye. I didn't like that either right now. I was so used to everyone avoiding my gaze.

"Where does that leave me? I-I thought I would still be in the picture." Was I really just nothing to her?

"I think you guys are getting a divorce," Dez said, his hand on my shoulder, but a hint of sarcasm in his voice. I don't think he liked comforting me either, and he started slipping back into his clumsy self. "Let's go back to my place and play video games. My mom is making mac and cheese too!" He pushed me out of the door and babbled on about how he was going to beat my high score.

"Thanks buddy," I said on our drive home. Dez just nodded, his eyes filled with pity. "But you are never going to beat my high score."

*.*

Jump to about ten minutes ago when I slowly walked up the stairs to Ally's practice room. I was mad, but I was pretty sure Ally hated me already, so I held it back as best as I could. I just couldn't let Ally walk away from me so easily. I cared for her, I really did. Even though every time I tried to show it, it would blow up in my face or crash on the ground like a giant piano falling from the sky.

"Ally?" I knocked on the closed door, and the music stopped. I just heard the blood rushing through my ears and my lungs filling with air. The door finally opened, and Ally stood there, her cheeks pulled back and her teeth locked together. I guess it was a smile.

"Austin, hey what's up?" How nonchalant.

"I just heard this crazy rumor," careful Austin, "that you were trying to start your own career."

_Boo! You suck, Austin Moon! Get off the stage, Austin Moon! Take your lousy songs with you, Austin Moon!_

"Excuse me?" Ally spat at me. Well I had definitely offended her.

"No, no, no, no, I didn't mean it like that. You can do anything! Remember; yay you conquered your stage fright!" I lazily raised my fist in the air.

_Boo! That whole verse was flat, Austin Moon!_

"Hey, well, since I'm here, why don't we sit at the piano and just write a new song?" I silently begged her to say yes. I couldn't go back home; I'm all out of guitar strings by now.

"Actually, I'm a little busy writing a new song for myself." Stop. Don't say it.

"So that's it? You're done with our partnership?" I couldn't hold the words down. The scorching water already overflowed and burned her, and I was nearly swimming in it every day since Kira said she'd be my girlfriend again. Why wasn't she still in pain? How come she got to move on and leave me burning alive?

"No, but you got your dream. You sang in New York on New Year's Eve. It's my turn now."

"But you're not even going to talk to me about it, or let me help out? Am I really so unimportant that you're just going to move on and forget about me? You would just cut me out of your life like that?"

Well I think you're all caught up now.

This is the biggest fight Ally and I have ever had, and it's mostly fueled by the fact that we kissed, and then I ruined everything.

_Boo! You can't even remember the lyrics to your own songs, Austin Moon! Stop trying, Austin Moon!_

I'm still standing here up at the top of the stairs on this almost balcony. Ally is sitting on the last step, and she's crying.

Aren't there any fairy tales where the prince tries to get the princess to stay in her tower? What's so great about seeing the world anyways? I don't want Ally to leave and forget about me. I want her to stay up here in our tower, safe from the world. I want to hold her, and place my palm at the back of her neck, under her hair. I want to buy her gifts for no reason and tell her that I saw a necklace, and it made me think of her. I want drive around Miami with her and sing along to the radio and kiss her goodnight when I walk her to her door.

Rapunzel, don't let down your long hair.

Prince Phillip, don't slay that dragon.

Cinderella, don't lose your glass slipper.

"Are you just going to stand there?" I look down and see Ally looking up at me. Tears are still rolling down her cheeks and her makeup is uneven and smeared across the back of her hand. I leave the tower and sit next to her at the bottom.

"Ally, the best thing about me is you."

_What's this, Austin Moon? Are you getting your rhythm back, Austin Moon?_

"That's not true." She swallows a sob and sniffs while looking at my hands in my lap.

"It is. People like the songs that you write. I just sing them. Trust me, I'm so happy and proud of you for defeating your stage fright, and I want you to perform, I swear. But I'm not-I'm not just some face that you cut out of old pictures. I've messed everything up, but Ally, I don't want to be cut out."

She just cries again. Can I put my arm around her? I want to, but I don't. I'm too afraid.

_Your voice cracked, Austin Moon! You need confidence to be on this stage! Boo! Boo, Austin Moon!_

"I'm so sorry, Ally. I know, it probably sounds like nothing to you, and it doesn't change what's happened, but I'm so sorry." My nose is starting to sting, and my throat locks up, and I think I might start crying, but I figure it doesn't matter anymore. I just want to hit restart like I do when I'm playing video games with Dez. I can always just start over until I finish the mission with a new high score and do everything right.

"That was my first kiss, you know," Ally whispers, her voice calmer than it was. Funny, she stops crying as I start. Now she'll really notice.

"I'm so sorry," I mumble behind my hands as they wipe my eyes over and over before any of the tears really make it down my face.

"I believe you." I feel Ally looking at me, but I can't turn my head. My eyes are probably red and my cheeks are probably blotchy, but my mind is still more of a mess. "I won't cut you out, Austin."

"What?" I finally turn to look at her. Her makeup's gone, and she looks sad, but I can see clarity within her eyes.

"I tried to cut you out. I was-I was hurt. Don't say you're sorry again," she says quickly before I can interject. I close my mouth, and I think I'm smiling back at her. "But I can't move on. You're in every song I write."

So I kiss her. I don't know if I should have. I guess that's when everything fell apart last time. But I hold her face, and my fingers brush along the back of her neck, and I smile.

_And the crowd goes wild! Austin Moon! Austin Moon! Austin Moon!_

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